Tax Time In October

Yuck!  It's tax time!!

I know it's only October, but since this is the first year filing as a corporation we have lots of things to clarify with our CPA before the end of the year.  Better get a jump on it early.

Yes.  We are eeeeevviiiil  corporate owners.   How soon will the hippies be descending upon our corporate headquarters (aka...the workshop) demanding that we provide jobs, benefits and ham sandwiches?   The first one of these useless dregs that volunteers to jump into a knee deep septic tank or crawl under a flooded crawl space with partially decomposed cats to re-plumb a leaking pipe, might get a job.  I feel pretty secure that we will continue to not have employees.

Here I thought I was done with financial planning.  Guess not.  Items to consider:

1. Are our lease agreements between us personally and the corporation legally constructed for
1. Equipment
2. Property
3. Vehicles
2. How much does the corporation owe us personally as  a share of utilities,internet and phone since these items are not physically separated  and are too expensive to separate.
3. Payroll from the corporation to us personally as W2 employees of the corporation.
1. Did we pay ourselves enough to satisfy the IRS that the wages are 'real'
2. Have we paid our payroll tax liability properly and on time.  Previously as sole proprietors we never had to worry about that: just pay the quarterlies.
4. Tax treatment of the leases.
5. Do we have the expenses in the correct catagories.  Cost of Sales, Capital Purchases, .
6. Are our depreciable items being correctly treated or should we just expense.
7. Have we adequately separated personal use items from business use items.
8. Have we structured everything to comply with the IRS rules, and California Corporate tax codes so as to minimize the taxes the corporation pays and minimize the income taxes we pay for W2 wages versus income that is treated differently (leases, reimbursement for expenses, investment income)
9. How soon will the Dumbplumber go nuts thinking about all this stuff.  Actually, that is my job.... to keep him from going ballistic and not sputter like an angry Daffy Duck.
10. Do we have enough personal liability insurance, property, vehicle.  Tax treatment of the premiums on the vehicles. 
11. What about sales tax on items sold versus items used in contracting jobs.  
12. Do I have any idea how to use my computerized accounting program or have I totally screwed it up.  Probably.  Maybe I should just go back to using a spreadsheet like in the dark ages of my bookkeeping experiences.
13. And on and on and on

Gah!!   Thank goodness we have a good CPA.

The Dumbplumber is invited, by me to stay away from this meeting.   It is WAY too early for our annual tax time arguments.